How Houston's Head Coach Can Take The Top Coaching Award

The Houston Rockets are in a new era, competing against some of the league's best teams and dominating defensively against some of the league's best offenses. The franchise has gone from being a perennial lottery team to a true contender in under three seasons, completely changing the league-wide view of their championship prospects.

Houston's new competitive era coincides directly with the addition of head coach Ime Udoka, who has quickly become one of the league's top coaches.

Udoka already had somewhat of a reputation before arriving in Houston. Just a few seasons before joining the Rockets, Udoka was leading the Boston Celtics to the NBA Finals. That team made it just two wins away from acquiring Boston's 18th championship.

Boston's hiatus from the Finals coincided with Udoka's hiatus from being a head coach. Both breaks ended in the 2023-24 season with the Celtics taking their league-leading 18th championship and Udoka returning to the sidelines as head man for the Rockets.

Ever since he's been with Houston, he's brought his familiar tough-nosed, no excuses mentality to his players. With so many young players on the team, he was able to form their mentality and competitiveness, as well as break bad habits for some of the previous era's players, like Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason, and Alperen Sengun.

The most significant improvement the team made under Udoka's leadership was defensively, as the Rockets became one of the league's best defensive teams last season.

The addition of Dillon Brooks and Steven Adams added more firepower to the defense and rebounding for the squad, two things the Rockets have been elite at since Udoka arrived in Houston.

The Rockets still expect to have a strong defense next season with the additions of Kevin Durant and Dorian Finney-Smith, but the defense isn't what is holding Udoka back from taking the top coaching award.

Houston must perform better offensively next season if Udoka hopes to have a chance at not only winning Coach of the Year, but winning a championship with his current core. Durant's addition should be a significant help in improving the offense, but it will still require some effective schemes and game planning to get the most out of Durant's teammates

If Udoka can get the best offensive versions of his players and maintain the defensive effectiveness, the Rockets could be threatening for a top-two seed once again next season. A well-balanced effort and an improved record could be what it takes for the Rockets to see their skipper being recognized as the league's top coach next season.